During the 21st and 22nd century, Artificial Intelligence technology progress peaked then unexpectedly plateaued before the singularity was reached (to the surprise, relief or despair of humans, depending on their convictions). Way before super-A.I.s assisted the governments in every decision, machines were at the helm of starships. Because even when a flesh-and-bone captain is in command, the real heart and soul of a ship is its onboard A.I . Indeed, only a machine can really comprehend and finely control a such complex beast as a spaceship.

In Ceres, every ship has an A.I . This A.I is defined by the following specs: - Name - Type - XP - Age - Traumas (% of erratic behavior/ seizure under stress)

Some AI are slow but resilient, others intelligent but with many weak spots, while some AI can literally see beyond the time horizon (at the expense of mental sanity - like Lovecraft) or be super-intelligent with psychotic characteristics. You can train some AI in simulators, while AI of damaged ships may suffer past nightmares or glitches (or post-traumatic disorders). Unloading or expurging a malfunctioning AI of a ship is like brain surgery: it is a complex and costly process and might leave malign residue that might turn the next AI into a monster or a mad AI.

An AI is made of a core and its system extensions: energy, propulsion, sensor, weapons and bridge. Hacking might break into the extensions, and turn them off or destroy them. Or worse: hacking might allow access to the core of the AI and stun/ take over / wipe out the ships' system in their totality.